During a shoot I bob and
weave, dance the fandango
and sometimes push myself to
the point of exhaustion. I might
start off with a serious edge,
but I usually commit some faux
pas that breaks the ice. Some
people may think I’m eccentric,
some may even think I’m crazy,
but whatever the situation is,
I never bullshit.

Australia
tamiko@tamikochee.com
+61 418 462 801

The compliment I pay all my
subjects is to be honest and
honour them as equals. I’ve
spent years with all kinds
of egos in front of my lens,
including prime ministers,
rock gods, bikie gangs, artists,
actors, pop stars, authors,
comedians and a host of
so-called everyday people.
When I take their photographs,
my philosophy is “keep it
simple stupid” and I hope
that the subjects will reveal
something defining and real
about themselves – they
usually do. Even when I do my
books and personal projects
I maintain this fundamental
idea of simplicity.
Here’s a glimpse into some of
my favourite shots. All of them
have an interesting story to
tell, whether it be a drunk rock
star or a dog that won’t sit still.
Whatever the story might be –
believe me, it’s all non-fiction.

MAD NNA
Debut self-titled album cover
She arrived at my Broadway
studio in New York with a small
bag of clothes and jewellery,
and no entourage. Then, in
front of the camera she was
explosive, like a great model,
but with her own unique style.
She came over the next day
to see some prints and the
proofs, and there was shot
after shot to choose from.
We agreed on every choice
and whittled it down to the
album cover images.
I had no idea what I had just
been a party to

…

1

1

2

BRETTWHITELEY
When I went to Brettâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s studio
in Surry Hills, I saw his painting
of Joel Ellenburg (a sculptor
who died of cancer), rendered
in the image of the crucified
Christ, and I was immediately
drawn to it. Perhaps there was
something prophetic about
the painting, as I knew about
Brettâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s never-ending struggle
with heroin addiction.
In my portrait, he seems to
blend into the painting and
become a part of it.

3
CATE
BLANCHETT
What can I say that you
don’t already know from
the big screen?
She is smart, beautiful,
approachable, in control
and ready to play. What
you see is what you get.

3

4

Z
Zoo, Random House 1996
Why? It’s a question I asked
myself more than once during
the two years it took to put
these photographs together.
I asked it as I watched a
lioness rip the hell out of six
hundred dollars worth of
background, having first, with
critical economy, peed all over
it. I asked it as the white rhino
stood bum-to-camera for a
myopic eternity staring at a
similarly expensive backdrop
and then horned into it.
The fact of the matter is that
these animals are wild and
getting into an enclosure with
them was dangerous. I held
a tarantula in my hand, I had
a rattlesnake spray me with
venom, a cheetah purred
as it rubbed against my leg,
mandrills threw shit at me, and
I escaped over a fence when
the rhino charged me, leaving
my camera and tripod as
its near victims.

5

6

DAMEEDNA
EVERAGE
We set up backstage in a
Canberra theatre and waited
till the end of her performance.
She didn’t quite expect the
two hunks to be waiting in the
background for her, but she
didn’t blink an eye and when
I asked her to put her foot on
the guy’s back she stomped it
on his head and pushed down
hard. The whole shoot lasted
ten minutes.

ANDREWJ HNS
7

I did a charity campaign shoot
of each of the team captains
of the National Rugby League
holding the premiership trophy.
It takes two normal people
to pick up the heavy trophy
but all of them treated it like
a paperweight.
Eventually it came to
Newcastle captain Andrew
Johns’ turn. Touted as the
greatest Rugby League player
of all time, Johns shattered
the myth that football players
are boofheads. Not only is he
superhumanly talented on the
field, he was also charismatic
in front of the camera. After
an initial moment of shyness,
he revealed the strength that
made him a living legend.

MEATL AF
I don’t mind big, difficult
egos – they come with the
territory. I actually get off when
celebrities like the exuberant
Meat Loaf exceed my
expectations, egos included.
It’s happened plenty of times
in my career, with personalities
like the incredibly sexy Ellen
Barkin, the legendary Lou
Reed, the drunk, drug hazed
Joe Cocker and even the
brash former Australian Prime
Minister Paul Keating.
I can’t remember too much
about this shot except that it
was for Rolling Stone. Maybe
we had too good a time
together. It looks like it. At the
time, his career was at a low
and he was working his way
back up. This is the kind of
person you love to get in front
of the camera, full of energy
and attitude.
The truth is, it never goes quite
the way you expect it will, so
you’d better be able to think
laterally, move fast and don’t
ever forget to enjoy the ride.

8

9

GRANDIFL RA
Grandiflora,
Viking/Penguin 2000
Grandiflora Arrangements,
Lantern/Penguin 2007
My wife Saskia is the über
florist of Sydney and has a
shop called Grandiflora. She
was always telling me to “sniff
this flower” and “have a good
look at just how beautiful this
bloom is.” She inspired me to
do individual portraits of the
myriad of flowers that came
into her shop. As with all my
projects, I am attracted to the
beauty in things, so every few
days for four seasons I would
choose the specimens that
caught my eye and take them
home to shoot them on my
4x5 camera. The end result
was a lavish coffee table book
called Grandiflora.
The second book was a
deeper collaboration between
Saskia and I. Inspired by
her passion and creative
skills, I photographed floral
arrangements created in the
shop in individually styled
settings where every element in
the image, including the vase,
background and foreground,
was integrated.

10

11
AUSTRALIAN
L
W
B ARD
Communication Arts
selection August
photo issue 2007
I was always worried that
we wouldn’t pull this off.
Fortunately, the art director
wasn’t and he kept the
idea just literal enough not
to blow the aesthetics.
We had the clothes made up
with the weaving unstitched
at key contact points and
although we tried to shoot
the yarn from every angle
we ended up creating it in
Photoshop and dropping it in.
This was all about collaboration
and a client who let “creatives”
own the day.

11

12

ADVERTISING
When I moved back to
Australia the celebrity market
was too thin to make a good
living out of, so I turned to
advertising for the fuel to fund
my life and especially my
projects. It’s almost impossible
to make a living in a small
economy out of books or
exhibitions, but you can’t let
that stop you.
Dove
In advertising you’re only as
good as the idea, and in the
case of Dove Real Beauty it
came out of London.
I was assigned to shoot the
Australian and Asian campaign.
This threw me into the world
of digital, because in Asia
they want shots exported
and approved overnight, in
fact I haven’t not shot film for
advertising since.
adidas
adidas sent me to
New Zealand to shoot one
of the all time greats of rugby
union – Jonah Lomu and a
series of Maori portraits. For
this particular shot we had to
have a Maori elder present
to approve the tattoo (moko)
design. On top of that we
had half a dozen intimidating
players in the studio performing
the haka (the native Maori war
dance) so we could capture
some authentic emotion
in the shot.
St.George Bank
The new St.George Bank Visa
Card came in four colours –
pink, black, green and purple.
I was commissioned to shoot
four different characters to
convey a personality behind
each one of the colours.

David Jones
The David Jones Australian
Fashion Designers campaign
is a second nature job for me
and I suppose what I do best.
Shooting the best designers
Australia has to offer was
a real treat.
Supercoat
The Supercoat campaign had
the two evils, animals and kids,
but strangely I find working
with both subjects really
enjoyable.
American Express
Back in the days when I
went to Paris to shoot Elle
for American Express, I can
remember the overnight
anxieties of worrying about the
film and whether â&#x20AC;&#x153;I got itâ&#x20AC;?. This
on top of a clash of personality
with Elle and her bloody dog.
Toyota/Lexus
The Toyota campaign involved
the bright idea of setting up
in small town garages and
getting the station owner to call
around the local countryside
for Hi-Lux owners. They would
then tell them to come in and
get their picture taken for some
cash. We found so many great
authentic people during the
shoots, the woman in this shot
was the local bank teller.

13

The Lexus rear view camera
concept (opposite page),
was a simple and beautiful
campaign that effectively
delivered the message.

13

14

GE FFREYRUSH

15

Geoffrey was asked by
Instyle magazine what his
fantasy persona was, and
he answered: the geisha.
As he embraced every
aspect of geishadom,
akin to getting ready for
a stage performance,
his transformation was
seemingly effortless.
The diptych was the only way
I could convey the process.
With Geoffrey It was easy,
and the shots won a couple
of awards.

6

TRENTNATHAN
Winter/Summer
two year campaign
Looks simple right? You
should try getting two horses
to cooperate. To capture the
shot we had to get the horses
running past a huge black
background simultaneously at
just the precise moment. The
solution? We made a channel
out of cars and rope and
had a team of people yelling
themselves silly. Eventually it
worked, however one horse
decided on a different route
and jumped right over me
and the camera, leaving all
of us gobsmacked.
There was no doubt the
atmosphere was electric.
Pumping adrenaline, pounding
horse flesh and talented
models who showed some
real spunk.
You can’t help but love a shoot
like this where you just keep
working through the problems
16you get it right.
till

17

17

TWINS
Twins, Penguin/Lantern 2005
In part, this book was born
out of a conversation in which
I asked – “What if there were
two of me, or two of you here,
right now?”. It was as much
a question to myself as to the
other person, but for those who
know me, the idea of two of
me running loose is a bit scary.
So what is it about the duality
of mirror-image human beings
that fascinates us?

18

I photographed 70 pairs of
identical twins from the age of
nought to ninety and as with all
of my non-advertising projects,
this one satisfied my need
to break free of working as a
gun-for-hire. Sometimes I need
to make my own mistakes.
Not having anyone but myself
to blame is a creative detox
and necessary for my sanity.

19

WAYNE
R YCR FT
Citibank portrait prize
selection, Art Gallery of NSW
Wayne is a three-time Olympian
and in 2005 was the head
coach for the Australian
equestrian team.
I don’t think you could take
a portrait of him without a
horse, because he is probably
half horse by now (not that
I attempted to convey this
in the image).
He is a great bloke, shy and
laconic like a lot of Aussie
men who grew up on the land.
The only problem was the
horse’s perpetual erection,
but a cold hosing down
seemed to do the trick.

20

MARTYFELDMAN
During the late 1970s in Los
Angeles, I seemed to shoot all
the top comedians, including
Robin Williams, Rodney
Dangerfield, David Steinberg,
George Carlin, and Cheech
and Chong for Penthouse
and Playboy magazines to
illustrate their feature interviews.
They were some of the most
memorable encounters of my
career, and perhaps the most
memorable was Marty Feldman.
I went to Marty’s office in Warner
Studios to take this shot, and like
most comics, there is a serious
side to him that’s unexpected
until you start shooting and his
light-switch goes on. I asked
about this painting behind
Marty’s desk and he just jumped
up, grabbed it and opened the
flap on the front to reveal Queen
Victoria’s breasts. The breasts
could fold back and leave a
hole which perfectly framed his
wonderful face.

ELVIS
C STELL
People never live up to their
reputation. Well, almost never.
When preparing for this
magazine cover shoot of Elvis
Costello, I’d organised the
usual selection of groovy outfits
and accessories, but when he
walked in, I knew I wouldn’t
use any of them. As fabulous
as you hoped he’d be, Elvis
was pretty much the coolest
guy on the planet. He turned
up his collar, straightened his
signature horn-rims and looked
down the lens daring me to
improve on his own look for
the man who redefined pop
music in the eighties and has
continued to evolve without
losing an iota of cool ever since.

21

ANDYWARH L
Cover of American
Photographer
He never said a word to me.
I entered the factory and saw
someone make a selection
from a row of wigs. They said
I could choose a background,
so I dragged out one of Andy’s
flower paintings and set it up
against the wall and did my
lighting and waited. I played
with the pug in the box at
the secretary’s feet.
Andy entered, didn’t smile,
didn’t shake hands, so I
babbled away. To engage him
I left my shutter open and let
him shoot off his camera flash
and virtually take his own photo
… more babbling … I got the
pug and stuck it in his arms …
Great Andy, thanks very much.
He left, of course, with
no goodbye.